Vicki Lewis Thompson - Cowboy After Dark

His blue eyes lit up with pleasure. “Glad to hear it! Just say the word and I’ll take you on a complimentary rafting trip. Then you can know firsthand what you’re recommending.”

Unless she was mistaken, he’d just asked her out. Sure, it was kind of business-related, but she was getting a vibe from him that was all pleasure. Even more problematic, her body was responding to that vibe. “I, um...haven’t thought about it. Maybe sometime.” She cleared her throat and glanced pointedly at the flatbed with its mysterious cargo. “Do you still want to get that up the hill?”

“Yes, ma’am.” He winked at her.

Her stomach fluttered and her pulse rate shot up. She’d have to be careful or this tall cowboy would slip right past her defenses.

“I’ve figured out it’s a surprise wedding gift for Damon and me,” Phil said. “And I can’t wait to see it. Oh, my god, a Grady Magee piece on my property! Can you believe it?”

“It’s the least I could do,” Grady said. “After all the encouragement Damon gave me right when I needed it.”

“Should I call him?” Phil held up her phone. “I know you wanted to surprise us, but now I think he should be here when you take the tarp off and set it up.”

“Guess so.”

Hope felt sorry for the guy. He obviously was disappointed that his grand scheme hadn’t come off as planned. She glanced up at Liam. “Too bad it didn’t work out the way you both hoped.”

He shrugged one broad shoulder. “We tried.”

“If I hadn’t stood in your way, you’d at least have the trailer up there by now.”

“Wouldn’t have mattered. Even if we’d made it up, we’d never have been able to set up the sculpture without someone in the cabin hearing us. The flatbed makes a hellacious noise when you tilt it.”

“But you were trying to accomplish something cool, and I had Phil call the police.”

His dark eyebrows lifted. “So that was your idea?”

“Yeah, I told her to call the cops before I ran out to the driveway. When I saw the loaded trailer, I thought you’d already taken things from other houses and hidden them under the tarp. I’d convinced myself you were out to rob us blind.”

“Some imagination you have.”

“So I’ve been told.”

He rubbed his chin as he gazed at her. “Gutsy, too.”

“Not really.”

“Yes, really. You believed there was a problem, so you threw yourself into the breach. What if I’d run over you?”

“I didn’t think you would. Robbery is one thing. Manslaughter is another.”

“I suppose, but even so, I—”

“Damon’s on his way!” Phil waved her phone in the air. “And he’s bringing more muscle.”

Edie laughed. “I like the sound of that. This bachelorette party gets more interesting by the minute!”

2

LIAM WANTED THE flatbed up that driveway before Damon and company arrived. A guy had his pride. “If you ladies will excuse Grady and me, we’ll go around the block again and mount another charge up that hill.”

“We can line the drive and cheer you on,” Lexi said.

Liam winced. “Much as I love that visual, you can all help by going back to on the porch so I don’t have to worry about hitting somebody.” He’d probably have nightmares about seeing Hope in the middle of the driveway. Fortunately he had great reflexes and good brakes.

“Spoilsport.” Lexi punched him lightly on the arm. “Come on, ladies. We’re relegated to the porch while the macho cowboys prove they can take this hill.”

Rosie paused beside Liam. “You be careful.”

“Always.” He was glad to see her looking so perky. Wrangling those academy students must agree with her. She’d added some streaks of red to her blond hair, and he liked it.

She peered up at him. “You say that, but I know you run those rapids on the Snake River like a madman.”

“Who told you that?”

She smiled. “I have my sources.”

He didn’t doubt it. Every foster boy who’d lived at Thunder Mountain Ranch knew Rosie missed absolutely nothing. If a guy got away with some infraction of the rules, that was only because Rosie had decided to let it slide.

“I’ll be careful,” he said. “Grady worked hard on this sculpture, and I don’t want it ruined on my watch.”

Rosie nodded. “Of course you don’t. Also...” She paused and lowered her voice. “Hope’s a sweetheart, and she meant well. I take it you aren’t upset with her.”

“I’m not.” No, he was more intrigued. Not many people would stand in front of a truck that could mow them down.

“I’m not, either,” Grady said. “The plan was wrecked, anyway, and she gave us a heads up about that, so we’ll just work out a new plan.”

“That’s the spirit,” Rosie said. “Now get moving and take it easy.”

Liam scratched the back of his head. “Isn’t that what you call an oxymoron?”

“Not in my world. In my world, it’s the secret of life.” Rosie gave them a little wave and hurried up to join the others.

Grady glanced over at Liam. “You do realize she’s a Zen master in disguise, right?”

“That would explain a lot of things.”

“Take my word for it. She may look like a slightly overweight grandmother, but that woman has powers and she knows how to use them.”

“Then I wish she’d waved a magic wand and made us magically scoot up this driveway.”

Grady laughed. “She doesn’t have that kind of power. Besides, she knows it’s important for us to make it there on our own. She wouldn’t want to deprive us of that challenge.”

“You know what? I wouldn’t want her to.” Liam took a deep breath. “Let’s do this thing.” If he was picturing Hope gazing at him with admiration after he’d hauled the flatbed up the hill, well, showing off for women was one of the perks of being a guy.

Once they were in the truck and circling the block for the second time, Grady glanced over at him. “Is Hope the blonde you told me about, the one you were thinking of asking out?”

“Yep. Small world, huh?”

“She’s pretty.”

Liam thought she was several notches above pretty, but if he said that, he’d give away too much. “She is.”

“She seems nice. Yeah, she tried to get us arrested, but I can understand. We were a little intimidating coming up the drive full throttle.”

“I suppose.”

“But now that the dust has settled, you have a golden opportunity to get something started while you’re both here in Sheridan.”

“Maybe.” Liam thought so, too, but he was still adjusting to the new reality. He’d shifted the possibility of Hope to another time and place, but then she’d appeared right in front of him, literally, and now he had to decide how to respond to that. He didn’t think she was quite as glad to see him as he was to see her.

“Think about it. We’re all involved in the wedding. It’s the classic time for fun and games.”

“Does that mean I can expect you to get horizontal with a bridesmaid?”

“Nope. Casual hookups don’t appeal to me the way they used to.”

Liam got a kick out of that. His little brother was growing up. “But they’re perfectly fine for me?”

“Hell, no. She’s from Cody. If things work out, you could keep seeing her after the wedding.”

“And if they don’t work out?”

“You quit going into the hotel lobby after dropping off clients. She doesn’t seem like the type who would stop sending you business.”

“I’m not worried about that.”

“Then what are you worried about? I’ve never known you to hesitate once a woman catches your eye—which she has. You winked at her. That’s one of your moves.”

“It is not.”

“Sure it is. You give them a little wink to test their reaction, find out if you have a shot. I’ve seen you do it a hundred times.”